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Sunday, December 29, 2013

Just Five Goals

Like most folks', I imagine, my goals were a bit hit or miss in 2013. I won't run through them all, but let's just say that some I missed by a bit, some I missed by a lot, and some I simply ignored. I fell prey to the normal problems: not making my goals public, not checking in on status regularly, and setting negative goals instead of positive goals. Stepping back a bit though, I can see that part of the problem is that there were just too many goals. So this year, starting anew like so many others this January, I decided to whittle my goals down to just a list of five.
This was not as easy as I thought it would be. I'm a little flighty, so the idea of getting in better shape and reading twenty new books and making money via a side hustle and doing new things with the blog all appeal to me. Why choose, when I can try to do everything? There's no limit to the cool new ideas of what my life might be like, but a really limited amount of follow-through. So over a series of walks and jogs and the long car ride back from California this weekend, I came up with just these five things.

Launch "Personal Training for Your Pocketbook" and Partner with Eight Clients: Back in November, I mentioned that I will be launching a financial coaching service, focused on providing accountability and motivation through regular check-ins. I will be meeting with a business attorney that my pastor knows to go over a couple questions, and will then set up an LLC. After that, we are ready to launch, and then comes the real work of finding people to work with and for. Stay tuned and, if you are interested in hearing more about the services, feel free to send me a message.

Workout 313 Days Out of the Year (One Cheat Day a Week): Probably the most ambitious goal of the bunch, my approach here is to establish a daily habit of light workouts, rather than strenuous ones paired with off days. So, at least for the first quarter of the year, the minimum workout is either running 2 miles, or 20 minutes of cardio or weight training. They will ratchet up from there, especially as our annual AT hike approaches. My best friend and I stole an idea from Nudge to motivate us: if either of us doesn't adhere to the workout schedule for that month, he owes the other $20, to be used on hiking gear. Over the course of the year, this could be some serious coin. The worst bit, I think (and the pointed stick that will keep us motivated) is the thought of seeing the other guy happily sporting gear that you bought for him.

Achieve a Weight of 155 Pounds: I usually ace my annual physical. Everything's in range, good weight, all that. But this year I somehow tipped the scales at 170. For a guy who is 5'10", that's just barely within the normal BMI range. I blame Mrs. Done by Forty's absence, as now there is no one around to prevent me from eating pizza for ten nights straight. I asked my doctor what my prize fighting weight should be, and she recommended 155 pounds, so that's what I'm aiming for. On the plus side, if I achieve goal #2, losing fifteen pounds should be no problem at all.

Purchase a Cash Flow Positive Rental Property: We've been kicking around this idea ever since we began paying down the mortgage. But like with a lot of goals, we've used life's little happenings as excuses to procrastinate. No matter, later in 2014 when Mrs. Done by Forty is back from Peru for good, we want to use the cash we've been saving up to buy a single family home and use it as a long term rental.

Learn and Play Three Songs on the Guitar or Piano: I've wanted to play music ever since I was a kid. But like a lot of kids, this thought has stayed in the 'idea' stage only. When my favorite songs come on Pandora, I catch myself daydreaming that I'm on stage at some little venue, performing. So, I figure it's time to stop playing air guitar and to start playing that Fender that's buried in the garage. And if you're especially unlucky, maybe I'll tape the song and throw it up here on the blog.

So, those are my goals for the upcoming year. I'm planning on adding a progress check into the net worth updates or budget porn post for that month, so you can follow along, if that's your thing. Being an extrovert, maybe the publicity of the whole thing will keep me on schedule. Hope springs eternal this time of year, so I believe they're all within reach. If I can do just these five things by December 31st of next year, I think I can be happy with my year and, hopefully, myself. As always, thanks for reading.

I have a feeling the success or failure of my business is going to depend a lot on how much advice and information I can steal from you. You give the real advice, I act as the middleman and scoop up the profits: this is the model I'm relying on. ;)

Have you ever used gympact? It might help with your workout plan - though for a workout to "count" it needs to be a minimum of 30 minutes.

I've been using it for over a year now and have it set to a minimum of 5 days working out per week. All in all, I've earned over $140 using it. Not tons of money, but a nice bonus when it helps keep me from getting lazy!

One of my goals is to learn a musical instrument (I picked Ukulele, because I tried guitar and it was too hard but a friend of mine had the same problem and picked up the uke easier). I too have those daydreams! Good luck with the new business as well. Hope you get lots of clients!

Awesome set of goals here! I especially love the last one - I used to play violin, but at some point I stopped and I don't think I'd be able to play a single note on the thing if I picked it up today, but I've always wanted to relearn. So good luck with your musical goals - as well as all the rest! I agree positive goals are better than negative ones, and I like that you've set yourself up with things that are actionable and measurable. I'm sure you'll accomplish everything on the list in 2014!

I like the diversification of goals! That's kind of how mine are. I really want to concentrate on being healthy this year though. I don't want to lose weight because I'm on the lower end of a healthy weight - I just want to be in shape! I can't run three minutes without feeling out of breath. Baby steps :) Keep me updated on the workout goal. Be interested to see how it goes!

Lol I had the exact opposite goal as you do! I'm 155 and 6 feet. My goal was to be 165lb (keep in mind that my current 155 is muscle, so if I didn't work out, I'd be lighter). People say I'm a bit too thin, and unfortunately, Im still at 155 right now.

Yeah, the BMI numbers are a bit of an antiquated system, but I think it's a good quick and dirty way to figure out a healthy range of weights. I think 165 for your height would be a good, lean weight to be at.

Good luck with your goals! Like everybody else said, it's a great mix of goals here and they are pretty big - especially the second goal. This year was the one that I made my goals public too, but unlike other years, I went crazy with a huge list. We'll see what the best approach is at the end of the (next) year.

I've pretty much never even entertained the idea of playing music. I played saxophone for 5 months in 4th grade and quit because I hated it haha. I have some (very) musical friends and I realized that I was too far behind to ever catch up, nor do I have any reason to. If I had more free time outside of developing my blogs I would probably spend it reading or drawing. To each their own!

I LOVE your goals, especially #1 and #2! I look forward to reading more about your coaching business, and that's awesome about the accountability with your fitness goals! That would be awesome about the rental as well - great goals, Mr. DbF, good luck with them next year!!

Didn't know you were planning a financial coaching business...good luck with that. I'd be interested to know more about that. For #2, I hate those BMI measurements and I really don't think they are that accurate. I'm around your height and I think my ideal weight would be your current weight! And as for the guitar/piano, I'd definitely like to pick up the piano again. Took piano lessons as a kid and bought a keyboard recently, but it's in storage now at my parent's house because that we have a baby and need the space. Hope to move to a bigger place so I can play the piano for the baby, and maybe teach him. I'd also like to pick up the guitar too.

Yeah, the BMI stuff doesn't really account for body type, or the type of athlete you are. I'm pretty lean and would feel good between 155 and 165; I think if I were lifting a lot though, 170 would easily work, too.

The plan with the piano and your kid sounds pretty cool: a good way to bond and teach your kid a skill.

Those goals sound attainable! I really want to start playing the piano again too. I have one and it just sits there collecting dust =/ I took lessons for a decade as a child but it's slipping away from me.

For me making sure the goals were specific and something I could visually see really helped me to focus on them. I like the personal goal of learning to play 3 songs. I've always wanted to do that as well but the guitar is a bit hard for me, short stubby fingers. Have a great 2014, I'll be looking forward to the updates.

Good luck with your goals! I took up piano when I was 25-ish, and I played pretty consistently until Daughter Person was born (at 32). I want to start playing again - especially since she seems to like the piano in our living room.

Good luck on the goals! I'm trying to work on following through on mine too. My weight is definitely something that should be reduced by about 10 pounds, and I really look forward to the warm spring so I can get out and exercise too.

I think I need to put a number on how many times I need to work out per month. It gives me something to aim for! Good luck in 2014! Can't wait to hear more about the rental property as I'm incredibly interested in owning one, as well!